Individualism and the Formation of Human Capital
Katharina Hartinger, Sven Resnjanskij, Jens Ruhose, Simon Wiederhold
Journal of the European Economic Association,
forthcoming
Abstract
There is an ongoing debate about the economic effects of individualism. We establish that individualism leads to better educational and labor market outcomes. Using data from the largest international adult skill assessment, we identify the effects of individualism by exploiting variation between migrants at the origin country, origin language, and person level. Migrants from more individualistic cultures have higher cognitive skills and larger skill gains over time. They also invest more in their skills over the life-cycle, as they acquire more years of schooling and are more likely to participate in adult education activities. In fact, individualism is more important in explaining adult skill formation than any other cultural trait that has been emphasized in previous literature. In the labor market, more individualistic migrants earn higher wages and are less often unemployed. We show that our results cannot be explained by selective migration or omitted origin-country variables.
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Employment Effects of Investment Grants and Firm Heterogeneity
Eva Dettmann, Antje Weyh, Mirko Titze
Regional Studies,
Vol. 59 (1),
2025
Abstract
This study estimates the firm-level employment effects of investment grants in Germany. In addition to the average treatment effect on the treated, we examine discrimination in the funding rules as a potential source of effect heterogeneity. We combine a staggered difference-in-differences approach with a matching procedure at the cohort level. The findings reveal a positive effect of investment grants on employment development. The subsample analyses yield strong evidence for heterogeneous effects based on firm characteristics and the economic environment. They highlight the responsibility of the local funding authorities to clarify ex ante which goals of a funding programme are most important in their regions.
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Halle Institute for Economic Research
5th Finance and Productivity (FINPRO) Conference, Tokyo FINPRO5, co-organised by the IMF, the University of Tokyo (CARF), IWH-CompNet, the University of Amsterdam and CEPR, will…
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Media Response
Media Response March 2026 Reint Gropp: Interview zu Teilzeit-Arbeit in: MDR Jump, 10.03.2026 Steffen Müller: Zahl der Firmeninsolvenzen steigt im Februar auf 1466 Fälle und liegt…
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Gender Equality & Anti-Discrimination
Equal Opportunities at IWH IWH commits to actively promoting equal opportunities for men and women, going beyond already existing guidelines. In 2013, 2016, 2019, 2022 and again…
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Overview
About the project Project Information: ProdTool – NPB 2.0: Micro-Data Analysis Tool 2.0 for comparative productivity studies at National Productivity Boards (Project acronym:…
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Centre for Business and Productivity Dynamics
Centre for Business and Productivity Dynamics (IWH-CBPD) The Centre for Business and Productivity Dynamics (CBPD) was founded in January 2025 and works with policy and research…
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Research Articles
Research Articles Explore cutting-edge research based on CompNet’s micro-aggregated firm-level data and related analytical tools. These articles cover empirical and theoretical…
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Governance & Structure
Governance & Structure The IWH Center for Business and Productivity Dynamism (IWH-CBPD), led by Center Chief Javier Miranda , hosts the CompNet Network and its related activities.…
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IWH-DPE in a Nutshell
IWH-DPE in a Nutshell The IWH Doctoral Programme in Economics (IWH-DPE) is the unit that organises the education of doctoral students at the IWH in close cooperation with partner…
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